Antiquities trafficking

Stolen Afghan manuscripts have been coming up for sale at major auction houses, according to research group

The Himaya project based in Qatar has been working with Interpol to identify artefacts trafficked to London, Paris and Amsterdam

Wanted in the US, Lebanese antiquities collector maintains his innocence, says his ‘big mistake’ was trusting New York art crime official

Lotfi addresses allegations that led to a warrant being issued for his arrest in a statement and interview, giving new details on the extraordinary story of the Metropolitan Museum's gold sarcophagus

French art dealer Didier Wormser stands trial for trafficking looted Egyptian antiquities

Owner of L’Etoile d’Ishtar gallery said artefacts from Saqqara necropolis “should be restituted to Egypt” but insists he purchased them in good faith

US customs agents seize Ancient Egyptian lid for mummy liver

The artefact, seized in Memphis, Tennessee, was en route to a collector who is believed to have falsified statements regarding its value

Lootnews

Allegedly stolen ancient Cambodian sculptures airbrushed from photoshoot of ‘most beautiful home in America’

Cambodian government says stone artefacts kept at San Francisco home of billionaire Lindemann family match those looted from sacred site

Arrest warrant issued for dealer who sold ‘hundreds’ of looted Middle East antiquities—some of which ended up in the Met

Georges Lotfi has been accused of handling the types of materials he helped the police recover and repatriate for years

Antiquities trafficking case escalates as Louvre Abu Dhabi joins civil action and Swiss collector files criminal complaint

In wake of scandal involving former Louvre director, France's culture minister forms taskforce to assess acquisitions procedures at museums

Egyptian antiquities connected to international trafficking ring seized from Metropolitan Museum in New York

Five objects worth more than €3m have been confiscated by authorities as part of a wide-ranging global investigation involving former Louvre director Jean-Luc Martinez

Louvre launches civil action as part of art trafficking case involving former director Jean-Luc Martinez

A number of objects purchased by the Louvre Abu Dhabi and the Metropolitan Museum of Art are now under scrutiny—including an ancient Egyptian marble head worth €35m

Former Louvre director Jean-Luc Martinez charged in connection with antiquities trafficking investigation

Martinez has been indicted for “complicity of gang fraud and laundering“ of objects purchased by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Louvre Abu Dhabi

Former Louvre director Jean-Luc Martinez questioned by police as part of probe into alleged antiquities trafficking ring

Investigation focuses on purchases made by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Louvre Abu Dhabi

Two lots withdrawn from Christie’s antiquities sale after possible ties emerge to dealers known to traffic in illicit artefacts

The artefacts were flagged by Christos Tsiogiannis, who has, since 2006, been identifying looted antiquities through photographic archives of suspected and convicted dealers in plunder

Archaeologist calls for repatriation of Roman fresco in Getty collection that came from known antiquities traffickers

Research published by forensic archaeologist Christos Tsirogiannis suggests the brilliant fresco fragment may have been illegally excavated near Pompeii

Billionaire collector Michael Steinhardt surrenders 180 stolen artefacts worth $70m

The items have been under investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney since 2017

Podcastsfeature

What distinguishes an art criminal from a regular crook?

The host of the Art Bust podcast argues that the nature and purpose of art crime–and by extension, of the art detectives who fight it—has changed in recent years

US returns over 500 smuggled pre-Hispanic-era artefacts to Mexican officials

Tools and other objects were discovered in a national park in southwest Texas, triggering an inquiry

Accord between US and Turkey to counter illicit trade in artefacts divides historians and preservationists

Critics say Turkish government polices give short shrift to religious minorities’ cultural heritage

Museum of the Bible in Washington returns around 5,000 disputed biblical objects to Egypt

Institution has been faulted for a lack of oversight in determining what artefacts were legally exported and sold

In the battle against antiquities trafficking, Germany develops app to identify looted cultural heritage

Government-funded image-recognition software will enable law enforcers to work with international organisations

After outcry from antiquities trade, Unesco further adjusts ad campaign on looted artefacts

Dealers association challenged the campaign’s claims that two newly pictured objects were stolen

Two Manhattan antiquities dealers arrested on charges of fraud

Authorities have accused Erdal Dere and Faisal Khan of running an alleged scheme to swindle buyers by using fake provenances

French dealer sues over Egyptian stele seized on way to Tefaf New York

Legal case brought against antiquities expert who also sold an allegedly looted golden sarcophagus to the Metropolitan Museum last year, while an arrest is made in Germany

'Adventurer scholar' Douglas Latchford dies in Bangkok, aged 89

Expert in Khmer and Indian antiquities was a dealer in Cambodian art in the 1970s and last year was accused of smuggling and creating false provenances for antiquities

International crackdown on art trafficking leads to 101 arrested and 19,000 artefacts recovered

Interpol says the operation spanned 103 countries and that objects ranged from coins to paintings to fossils